A place to share some reflections on faith, journeys and life in general...

Saturday, August 30, 2014

A CONTINENT DIVIDED...

It is only a matter of days since the world recalled the outbreak
of the Great War one hundred years ago.
Yet peace in Europe (or anywhere else in the world) remains fragile: daily
we witness Russian troops making incursions into eastern Ukraine as fighting
escalates and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso stated today
that: "We may see a situation where we reach the point of no return". And if this seems far from the shores of Britain, the remembrance
that the First World War began with the assassination of the heir to the
Austro-Hungarian throne in eastern Europe should make us stop and think.

At the same time as President Barossa is calling for Europe to
"stand by its principles" before the crisis reaches a "point of
no return" we, in Britain, are facing two opposing political developments:
the forthcoming vote on Scottish independence and the rise of anti-EU rhetoric focussed
by UKIP. The latter seems fueled by two
concerns, immigration and a perceived notion that the UK needs to become a ‘democratic, self-governing country once
again (which) can only be achieved by
getting our nation out of the European Union and reasserting the sovereignty of
Parliament’ (statement on UKIP
website). Whilst this seems to have growing
popular support, not least amongst members of the Conservative Party, it is
worth recalling in light of developments concerning the security of Europe why the
nations of our continent began the process of coming together after the Second
World War. The overall aim of the
EEC/EU, since its foundation in 1958, has been ‘to promote peace; the values of human rights; democracy; equality;
the rule of law; and the well-being of its peoples. These values are the
bedrock of the EU’s work and its role in the world.’ (Irish Dept. of Foreign Affairs) Shortly after the end of the War Robert
Schumann delivered a major speech in Strasbourg in which he spoke of the way
that the nations of Europe needed to come together so that 'war(between
France and Germany) becomes not merely unthinkable, but materially impossible.’
http://europa.eu/about-eu/basic-information/symbols/europe-day/schuman-declaration/index_en.htm He went on to state that: ‘The
European spirit signifies being conscious of belonging to a cultural family and
to have a willingness to serve that community in the spirit of total
mutuality, without any hidden motives of hegemony or the selfish exploitation
of others. The 19th century saw feudal ideas being
opposed and, with the rise of a national spirit, nationalities asserting
themselves. Our century, that has
witnessed the catastrophes resulting in the unending clash of nationalities and
nationalisms, must attempt and succeed in reconciling nations in a supranational
association. This would safeguard the
diversities and aspirations of each nation while coordinating them in the same
manner as the regions are coordinated within the unity of the nation.’ When measured against the petty nationalistic rhetoric of
UKIP and their supporters I find Schumann’s vision inspiring – and challenging. Of course, unity has to begin somewhere – in this
case as a Coal and Steel Community (ECSC)
– there has to be a greater vision than simply materialism. As human beings we have an urge towards a union
of hearts and minds, as expressed so eloquently by Schumann. Yet these observations and this call to unity seems forgotten and even our political journalists and commentators, when
questioning the narrowly focussed oratory of Farage and his supporters, fail to
direct attention to this vision and call to live in peace and security.

It is, then, with some amazement that I hear many of those
calling for the UK to leave the EU also demanding that the Scots remain part of
the UK. Clearly, what’s sauce for the goose isn't sauce for the gander! Michael
Gove, for example, seems to be a passionate supporter of the Union (of Scotland
and Britain) but an equally passionate opposer of the Union (European). And, whilst I cannot find a UKIP Policy on
the matter (their website lists few actual policies) I note the passion with
which Farage supports the Union (ditto Gove).
Here we seem to have a case of double-think or possibly, in
psychological terms, cognitive-dissonance.
And whilst F. Scott Fitzgerald observed: ‘intelligence
is the ability to hold two opposing ideas in mind at the same time and still
retain the ability to function" it seems more reasonable to assume he
was referring to holding different views on the same subject rather than double-think!

Christianity - catholic at least - has always believed that humankind
belongs together and that our task is to work towards unity. For our tendency towards separation, the pull
to individualism, is strong as is the
feeling that ‘I’m right – you must be wrong’.
As the Catechism of the Catholic
Church states: ‘… if we pray the Our
Father sincerely, we leave individualism behind, because the love that we
receive frees us from it. The
"our" at the beginning of the Lord's Prayer, like the "us"
of the last four petitions, excludes no one. If we
are to say it truthfully, our divisions and oppositions have to be overcome. (p.2792) It is easier to fragment than unify, live apart than together, separate than integrate. Yet fragmentation, living alone and separation cannot satisfy our deeper human need for belonging together. Not for nothing was it that, on the eve of
His passion and death, Jesus chose to pray – extensively – for the union of his
disciples (John 17) for the lure of separation
has been there since Eden but the call to union is the heavenly vision.

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About Me

I am a priest, spiritual director and accredited pastoral supervisor (Association of Pastoral Supervisors and Educators - APSE) living in south-east London. I also organise pilgrimages to the Holy Land. You can find out more from my website: www.spiritualdirectioninlondon.org.uk